The Lair
The Lair was a small plateau in a remote corner of the Twilight Mountains settled by the Badger Clan. Landscape The Lair was completely surrounded by mountains, shielded from outside view and sheltered from the worst of the weather, accessible only through a single narrow path. Book of Earth, p. 156 A fishing large steam known as the River of Three Horses run in the area. To the east and west of the Lair laid the mountains Kitai (Hope) and Kaikon (Regret), twin peaks which were among the highest in the Twilight Mountains. The primary source of lumber was the small forest called the Eiko no Mori, which was located alongside the road which descended from the plateau. The edge of the Lair was a cliffside called the Boar's Tusks. A large complex of shrines called Priests' Point was built near the forest. Book of Earth, pp. 162-164 History Settled by the Boar The place was found by Heichi Jomei, who made a Boar settlement there, to mine iron, copper and jade veins. The three major mines came to be known as the Three Brothers. A new village thrived, and his temporary fort eventually turned into a real castle, which was largely unknown outside of the Boar Clan. Book of Earth, pp. 156-157 Destruction of the Boar In the year 501 Agasha Ryuden sacrificed the Boar Clan and destroyed Shiro Heichi during the creation of the Anvil of Despair. Way of the Minor Clans, p. 113 Few weeks later the Lair came under attack from a force of Bloodspeakers, dispatched by Agasha Ryuden to dispose of this lingering remnant of the Boar Clan. Jomei won the day and decided the Lair would remain as the last stronghold of the Boar Clan, to preserve its heritage and maintain eternal vigil on the mountains. Jomei forbade anyone from leaving the Lair and its existence was henceforth to be a secret to the outside world. Book of Earth, p. 157 Forgotten by the World The Lair was never prosperous again, but it survived, its population more or less stable. Those who occasionally stumbled upon the Lair were required to remain with them lest they expose the hidden stronghold to its foes, killing those who did not accept. Book of Earth, p. 158 The Jomei When the original Heichi Jomei passed away, his son took the name of Jomei, and this soon became a tradition, so that a Heichi Jomei had always been in charge of the Lair, known as the Jomei. Safeguarding Taxes Jomei and his descendants safeguarded part of the clan's production for taxes in the Lair, to send these taxes back to Rokugan at the proper time. A gang who learned of the stored taxes from a captured villager, assembled a very large force, but failed to storm the castle. Book of Earth, pp. 158-159 Traditions Aged samurai shaved their heads and built a small monastery, preserving and teaching the ways of the Tao of Shinsei and the Fortunes. On one occasion, a plague ran through the valley and killed all the monks at the monastery; an expedition was organized to find and recruit new monks to serve the Lair's spiritual needs. The Boar maintained traditional tombs despite occasional warnings about the Imperial edict ordering cremation. They kept many ancient traditions, language forms, and historical records intact, including the secret techniques of the Heichi Bushi school. Samurai did not use kimono, and the style of dress known as hitatare was the norm. The Heichi of the Lair lacked any shugenja and had no real capacity to recognize or understand when one of their number had gained the favor of the kami. There were rumors of encountering the legendary Yuki no Onna in the mountainous forests nearby. Once the two weeks of the harvest were passed, the Boar celebrated a massive three-day festival to Inari, the Fortune of Rice. It was led by the monks of the Lonely Monastery, beginning and ending with massive feasts. Book of Earth, pp. 158-159, 161, 165, 168 Civil Conflict After two generations there were young samurai who wished to rejoin Rokugan. Violence erupted after an incident where one of the youngest samurai was killed by sentries when trying to escape. The current Jomei ended the civil conflict by killing in personal combat the rebel leader, his own son Heichi Jurei. Book of Earth, p. 159 Policy for Taint During the rule of the third Jomei a ronin named Ikaro was exposed as tainted, slaying dozens of Boar samurai who sought to arrest him. The Jomei ordered that henceforth all Tainted samurai in the Lair would immediately cleanse their shame with seppuku or face execution. Book of Earth, p. 170 Lying Darkness Attention The paranoid isolation of the Boar made them somewhat more vulnerable to the Shadow's machinations. In the late 8th century a leading sensei of the Heichi Bushi school, Heichi Kommei was utterly corrupted by the Nothing, and began to create a group of faceless shadowspawn with his students. Kommei was forced to disappear when he was exposed by a pair of Crab samurai unwilling guests, Kuni Aoki and his companion Hiruma Otoru. Nearly a third of the samurai under Kemmei's care disappeared, never to be seen again. Book of Earth, p. 169 Notable Locations * Lair of the Boar - castle * Boar's Flanks - castle town * Three Brothers: Goshoryu, Dammaku, Ozashin - mines * Lonely Monastery * Shrines of the Dead - Cemetery * Boar's Tusks - cliffside * Eiko no Mori - forest * Hope and Regret - mountain peaks * River of Three Horses Category:Boar Clan Holdings